Email this article to a friend

Federal Drive interviews - Nov. 27, 2012

Tuesday - 11/27/2012, 9:02am EST

Guy Timberlake —
Co-founder and Chief Visionary
Officer, American Small Business Coalition

This is the season for giving, and for giving back to those who sacrified for the
good of the United States. One such event takes place next week in Northern
Virginia,
and it's always a popular draw. Timberlake is the man behind the charity
bash.

'Tis the season of Secret Santas, white elephant gifts and good will toward men.
But if you're a federal employee, there's a strict list of who it would be
naughty get or give a present to. Mahoney has some tips for federal employees.

Is your agency one of the "Best Places to Work?" You'll know soon. The annual
rankings will be announced in two weeks. Palguta discusses how you can make the
most of the latest data from the Partnership.

MORE FROM THE FEDERAL DRIVE

Cybersecurity Update

Just a couple of weeks after Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.)
pronounced it dead, some lawmakers are saying a cybersecurity bill could be take
up in 2013 by the new Congress. Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) tells the Kansas City Star it's an issue of national
security Congress needs to tackle in a responsible manner. The stalled legislation
was caught in the cross currents of privacy advocates, opponents of regulation and
arguments over the proper role of the Homeland Security Department. The principal
author of the bill, Joseph Lieberman, will be gone next year, but his co-sponsor,
Republican Susan Collins of Maine, will return. (Kansas City Star)

President Obama wants agencies to place minimum insider threat protections on
their computer networks. The White House has issued a memo outlining the standards set by the Insider Threat Task
Force. The new protections will try to "deter, detect and mitigate actions by
employees who may represent a threat to national security." That includes
espionage, violent acts against the government and unauthorized disclosure of
government data. (White House)

The Navy is trying again to buy a new fleet of presidential helicopters. And
it's looking to buy them on the cheap. It canceled the last try in 2009 when costs
on a contract with Lockheed Martin ballooned out of control. NextGov reports
this time the Navy is calling for proposals to modify an existing, commercial
helicopter instead of designing a new one from scratch. It hopes to spend a little
under a billion dollars for 23 units. The new machines, dubbed VXX, will
eventually replace Sikorsky helicopters, some of which went into service more than
30 years ago. (NextGov)

The Army has awarded 20 companies a spot on a $10 billion contract for
communications technologies. The Global Tactical Advanced Communications System is
a five year, indefinite delivery-indefinite quantity deal. Orders smaller than 4.5 million are set aside for small business. The roster of winners
includes six small companies. The Army says G-tacks provide a single place to buy
technology for both production and test environments. It replaces the World Wide
Satellite Systems contract. (Federal News Radio)